E121: Secular Spirituality: Beyond Woo Woo & Religious Claims w/ Rachel Roberts

Explore what it means to be "spiritual" or live meaningfully without the outmoded accessories of religious trappings. Rachel Roberts will offer definitions of terms that illustrate how ancient human inclinations, such as spirituality, are still relevant but need to be recontextualized in the 21st century. She will also provide examples and ideas for nonreligious meaning-making traditions and rituals that can enhance everyday living and the overarching life journey. Being connected to something greater than ourselves, whether it's community, love, nature, or any other value, is the epicenter of secular spirituality. Rachel Roberts is the author of Confessions of an American None: A Credo of Sorts. The study of religion has been her passion since young adulthood. She has a bachelor's degree with an emphasis on philosophy of religion, and a masters degree in Theological Studies from Southern Methodist University. She grew up in a Christian cult with her mother, yet her father was an atheist. After an on-again, off-again relationship with Christianity as an adult, Rachel found her truth and freedom in coming out as a non-believer. Rachel has three children, a dog named Tito, and a cat named Strudel. Her guilty pleasures include gummy bears, a crisp IPA, and Star Trek. For RfRx comments, inquiries & topical questions, email us at [email protected]. Any time you are struggling with religious doubts or fears you can connect with a trained RfR Helpline agent 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. To chat online go to http://www.recoveringfromreligion.org. To talk over the phone, dial: (844) 368-2848 in the US & Canada +3 4505 2402 in Australia +20 3856 8791 in the UK +27 11 043 5323 in South Africa Peer support is also available through local support groups. These groups offer monthly in-person meetings as a place to express doubts, fears, emotions & concerns about religion you wouldn't normally feel comfortable expressing in a religious community. Find your nearest support group at https://www.meetup.com/pro/recovering-from-religion If you are in need of professional help, we can offer the Secular Therapy Project to provide options to connect with a professional therapist. All therapists have been thoroughly vetted by our organization and offer only evidence-based and non-religious treatment. Connect with them at http://www.seculartherapy.org. RfR has an immense collection of well-curated resources available as you go through your journey, including resources for mental and physical crises, working with relationships, issues stemming from specific religions, coming out stories, and much more. Head to https://www.recoveringfromreligion.org/resources for these helpful resources. Subscribe to the RfR Blog: https://medium.com/excommunications